Immunity: The 200th Hunger Games
by misfit-right-in
Summary: For Brea Braddock, life as a victor had become the new normal. It was the 200th Hunger Games. Just another year. Just another responsibility. Just another pair of dead kids. Tomorrow, the ride would begin and she wasn't nervous, just scared out of her wits.
1. Chapter 1

_A pleasant warmth hit my skin as I cautiously blinked my eyes open. The scenery was familiar, the twisted trees, the looming mountains, reminding me of my impeding death. However, something was off. It was silent. Quiet. Peaceful._

 _But something was off. It never been that peaceful. Not once._

 _Something was coming._

 _Chills ran up my spine and my hands began trembling. I had lived this before._

* * *

"Brea! Brea, wake up! You're shaking! Are you okay?"

I sucked in a breath as I pushed myself up against the wooden backboard of my bed, "Sorry, Gia," I muttered softly as I slipped out of the heavy covers that adorned my bed. I lightly tapped the silver metallic lamp that sat on my bedside to illuminate the darkened room, "Did I wake you?"

My sister sighed softly, "Yeah, but it's fine, just go back to sleep, Brea. Tomorrow is going to be a long day for you..."

"I'm sorry, I just keep picturing myself back there and I can't sleep. Anyways, why don't you go sleep downstairs with Ray so I don't keep waking you up. We have more than enough rooms for you to have your own," I offered as I headed to the closed window of my room and slid it open, letting a chilling breeze enter the room. It was a crescent moon tonight. Just a thin sliver of silver in the dark sky, barely noticeable. A glint of light in a mass of darkness.

"I like sharing a room with you, it reminds me of our old house," Gia replied in a rather carrying whisper, "Plus, Ray snores...loudly."

Restraining the chuckle that bubbled in my throat, I opted for a slight smile. Her words held no lies, our older brother no quiet sleeper., but I doubted I was a better roommate. I understood why she refused to sleep alone, Victor's Village house was large and in a way, almost _too_ large for just three siblings.

In our old home, we only had two rooms, one for our parents and one of Ray, Gia, and I. Our life back then was much smaller and much simpler. We had to work hard and spend long hours working and we rarely had enough food, but I was happy. No nightmares, no cameras, no _death_.

"Brea," my sister asked, now in a sitting position, her legs crossed, "Are you nervous for tomorrow?"

I looked at her for a moment. Her curly brown hair was piled into a messy bun on top of her head, a trick she had learned from me over the years and her chocolate colored eyes still managed to exude a sort of childish maturity. She was barely 16, and constantly claimed she was "practically an adult", but she would always be my little sister and I knew I would miss her the most when I left for the Capitol tomorrow. I knew Ray was more than capable of taking care of Gia, but leaving was _never_ easy.

Much to my dismay, this would be my 3rd year mentoring and I was just starting to realize it was never going to get easier. As soon as I won the 197th games I was told I would be taking over as district 10's female mentor. Rhea, the only other living female victor, was 84 years old when she mentored me during my games and she was finally able to retire after I won. It was tradition in most of the lower districts for the newest victor to takeover as mentor after they won.

This year would be my first Quell and I was nervous as hell. The 200th Hunger Games.

Just another year.

Just another responsibility.

Just another pair of dead kids.

Tomorrow, the ride would begin and I wasn't nervous.

I was just scared out of my wits.

* * *

"Quit chewing your lip, if you're hungry, eat something," Ray teasingly chided me as came out from his room. I tended to bite my lip when I was nervous, however, I never managed to look endearing doing it. Go figure.

"So, are you ready for the Capitol?" Ray asked me as her ran a comb through his jet black hair. Unlike Gia and I who owned chestnut brown locks, he took after our father with raven hair, none the less, when we stood together, it was clear we were all siblings. This year, we were all dressed in navy blue; Ray is a crisp suit and Gia and I in similar dresses.

The Justice Building was decent walk from our home and although I knew if we didn't leave now, we'd be late. With all honesty, I was riddled with conflict. The second I left the house, the ride would start and I wasn't ready.

Before I had too much time to contemplate, I heard a terse knock on the front door, "Brea, it's me! Open up."

I instantly recognized Gia's light voice and opened the door, "Gianna Braddock, where have you been?"

Gia seemed to believe if she avoided my question long enough, she wouldn't have to answer. She looked at the floor, avoiding my steady gaze. It had been the third time this week she had disappeared late and appeared in the morning. Her hair had been brushed hastily and her brown eyes were clearly riddled with guilt. Gia was never a good liar, in fact none of us were much for secrets...that is until my games. I was far from proud of it, but I learned to lie. Lying to Gia and Ray hurt my heart, but there were just somethings they could never know.

I let out a deep breath, "Fine. We will talk about this later. Let's just get to the reapings, okay?"

* * *

I sat silently on the stage next to the three other living victors. I was seated next to Maxwell Ernest with Rhea Ingle and Tucker Palely behind us.

Out of the three of them, I barely knew Tucker. I knew he had mentored Maxwell during his games, but other than that, he liked to keep to himself. He rarely showed his face in public and from what I've heard, he knew how to hit the bottle hard. Almost every victor had been there at least once in their life. Whether it was pills or morphine or simply alcohol, we'd all been at our all time lows. The Capitol glorified winning the games and made winning seem like the end to all tragedy, but I remember my low all too clearly. Never in my life had I been so thankful for Ray who saved me from spiraling into another Tucker Palely.

The soft hum of nervous whispers was ever present before the reapings began. This year's quell twist was extremely...unique... Every family had been granted one immunity for the games. One chance to save one of their children. With Gia as the only one eligible for the games within our family, she was completely safe from the reapings, however for families with multiple eligible kids, it made matters far more complicated and in a way, these were by far the cruelest and most twisted games yet.

As Rhea began muttering soft gibberish as she did when she was nervous or angry, Maxwell reached back to comfort the nervous woman. Despite her episodes, Rhea Ingle was one of the strongest souls I'd ever met. She had been through more than any of us could possibly imagine and yet she managed to stay strong as ever.

It wasn't more than a few tense minutes before a silence swept the crowd and district 10's escort stepped forward. Delphi Carrow was an extremely striking woman. High cut cheekbones and sharp green eyes paired with pale, porcelain skin gave her a extremely memorable look. At first glance she seemed harsh and willful, the type of woman who'd let nothing slip by her, but despite her appearance, she was an understanding woman.

"Welcome to District 10's reapings," Delphi announced with such confidence one only gained with years of experience, "We are proud to present Immunity: The 200th Annual Hunger Games. Joining us today are Mayor Hopkins, along with Rhea Ingle, Victor of the 129th Hunger Games. Tucker Palely, Victor of the 161st Hunger Games, Maxwell Ernest, Victor of the 186th Hunger Games, and finally Victor of the 197th Hunger Games, Brea Braddock."

The wave of applause flooded through the crowd and a couple cheers filled the air. If anything, district 10 was a very proud district and despite our lack of wealth, we were a strong and unified district.

Delphi clapped her hands once and the applause faded away, "As you all know, this year's games revolve around immunity, meaning that no volunteers will be allowed and whichever two tributes are chosen, will be sent into the games. If you were not already aware, Maxwell Ernest and Brea Braddock will be this year's mentors and as usual, we'll begin with the lovely ladies first."

The clicks of 6 inch heels were audible as Delphi stalked across the stage towards the clear bowls filled with names. The bowls were significantly lighter than usual and part of me was glad that at least some children were safe this year, it just hurt me to think that some parents were forced to play favorites with their children.

"Cheyenne Bell," Delphi called out, causing everyone racking their eyes through the crowd searching for the poor girl. There was a bit of movement in the 17 year old section and a blonde girl stepped forward then on to the stage. Her face let away no more than a blank expression and as Maxwell and I shared a look, I could tell we were both unsure about the girl.

A short applause filled the air as she stood on the stage, arms crossed, watching Delphi choose the next name, "Chord Finley."

This time a tall, muscular male from the 18 year old section stepped up to the stage. He eyes were searching the crowd, clearly looking for somebody. A loud sob was heard and I could tell Chord was clearly affected by it.

"Two oldies this year," Maxwell whispered into my ear, "That's lucky..."

I shook my head, before whispering back, "Most of the tributes are going to be older, most families used immunity on their youngest kids."

By the time Delphi got back to her microphone Chord's applause had died out, "Very well then, Cheyenne Bell and Chord Finely are district 10's tributes."

The two shook hands quickly and were ushered into the Justice Building as Maxwell and I prepared to go inside. Taking one final glance to where Ray and Gia sat I gave them a slight smile, which they both returned.

Just as I was about to head inside, Rhea tapped me on the shoulder and whispered in a barely audible voice, "Good luck and stay strong."

I had heard those exact words before. They were the last words I head before I went into the arena.

How ironic.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Hi! I'm misfit. right. in. and I hope you enjoyed my very first chapter of  Immunity: The 200th Hunger Games. If you could leave a review to tell me what you think, that would be wonderful. As a rather new fanfiction writer, I'm still learning the ropes and all critique is welcome!

 **\- Cass**


	2. Chapter 2

_"I love you guys," I whispered through the wet tears that slid down my cheeks._

 _My mother shook her head vigorously, "Don't say it like that. Don't say it like you aren't coming are coming back."_

 _I took a tissue from a nearby box and attempted to dry my eyes, "Mom, be realistic, it's 1 out of 24. I don't have a chance. Ray, tell her."_

 _My brother wrapped his arms around her, "Let's not talk about this, okay. Let's just talk about happy memories."_

 _"Happy memories?" I asked, as I took a seat between my father and my sister who sat in silence._

 _He nodded, "Happy memories."_

* * *

"This is ridiculous. The tributes get to see their families while we just have to sit here," Maxwell complained, crossing his arms.

"Don't complain, Max," I replied, although parts of me slightly agreed with him, "At least we know we're coming back for sure...at the very best one of them isn't coming back..."

He simply sighed and picked up one of the magazines sitting on the clear, glass table in front of us. I was about to follow the suit and pick up a magazine, but the whiff of vanilla and peppermint instantly captured my attention. Turning my eyes towards the owner of the unique scent, I was greeted by the sharp eyes of Delphi Carrow.

"Maxwell, Brea, good to see the both of you are keeping well," Delphi commented as she stalked into the room. Her pressed back shoulders and impeccable posture gave her a commanding presence which worked perfectly for her line of work, "And Maxwell, how are your wife and baby girl keeping?"

The mention of his family instantly lit up Maxwell face as he broke out into a wide grin, "Landry and Leanne are doing very well, thank you."

It made me beyond happy to see Maxwell have the family he's always wanted. I knew his life was far from perfect, but it was nice to see him have some normal aspects in his life and oddly enough, it gave me hope for my future.

Taking a quick peek at the old watch wrapped around my left wrist I noticed the time, "Heads up, we've got to be on the train in about 10 minutes, the tributes will meet us there, if I'm not mistaken..."

Maxwell nodded halfheartedly, "We should head outside so we're not late."

* * *

Cheyenne Bell and Chord Finely were two very unique individuals, to say the least.

Cheyenne came from a middle class family with a 12 year old sister who the immunity had be used on, whereas Chord came from a very wealthy background with a 15 year old brother and a 13 year old sister who the immunity had been used on.

Straight off the bat, I could tell that neither Cheyenne and Chord were leaders or go-getters, but rather the type of people who typically blended back into the background. In some ways, blending in was an advantage. It took a particular target off your bat, but when it came to getting sponsors I knew standing out was important.

Earlier, Maxwell had decided he wanted to directly work with Chord, leaving me with Cheyenne. I had nothing against the girl, but I knew Chord was much stronger than her and he probably fared a better chance at winning. It broke my heart to think like that, but I had to be realistic. If there was one thing I learned during my first year as a mentor, false hope was far more brutal than reality.

Cheyenne and I had decided to move to the dining room for a bit of one-on-one and we planned to regroup with Chord and Maxwell in a couple minutes, just prior to watching the reapings as a team.

"So, you're Brea Braddock..." Cheyenne began, cautiously staring me down.

I chuckled softly, "Yeah, that's what they call me. You're Cheyenne Bell, right?"

She nodded curtly, "So, you won like 3 years ago, right? How'd some random district 10 girl manage that?"

Rather than nervous or scared, she seemed rather angry and agitated.

I shrugged, "Honestly, it's a lot more complex than you'd think and as much as I wish I could explain, I think our time is better spent on other matters. But I have to ask, are you okay?"

"I don't know..." she scoffed, "I'm being sent to my death because my parents chose my _precious_ sister over me. You should have seen them at the goodbyes, they didn't give two hoots about me."

"I'm sure your parents love you," I replied, attempting to be as sympathetic as possible.

She shook her head bitterly, "You don't know that. Now enough about my family, let's talk strategy."

"Okay, sure," I replied, "So, what Max and I usually do first is take a look at the reapings as group, so why don't we head back to the main car so we can regroup."

She nodded in agreement and we slid open the glass door and entered the room. Chord and Maxwell were seated on the couch engrossed in heavy discussion and barely noticed us enter.

As I cleared my throat awkwardly to announce our entry, both heads turned in our direction.

Max grinned, "Glad you ladies could join us, we were just about to start the reapings."

Flipping on the wide-screened television, District 1's reapings instantly began. Scarlett Price, a 16 year old girl and Victor Lux, a 17 year old boy were reaped. The pair seemed quite formidable and from the clearly defined muscles appearing on both their bodies, it was no doubt they were both careers.

Nike Rouge, 18 and Julius Stone, 15 were both reaped from district 2. Similar to district one, both has the obvious looks of careers, however Julius lacked the maturity and experience of the typical district two males. Without the option of volunteers, the career dynamic was going to be very unique.

Kennedy Fuse and Albert Sparks, both thirteen years old, were reaped from district 3. Both looked fairly terrified, but similarly managed to keep there composure. Although I was quite sure neither of them would fair all too well, ruling out tributes simply based on their age an appearance was never a smart move.

Marina Rivers, 15 and Troy Hudson, 12 were reaped from district 4. Judging from the way she pranced up to the stage, Marina seemed rather flirtatious and a little arrogant, whereas Troy couldn't be described as anything other than camera-shy.

Davina Simmons, 13 and Isaac Briggs, 18 were reaped from district 5. Davina didn't stand out too much, however Isaac Briggs instantly captured my attention. Carter Briggs, victor of the 170th games, was Isaac's father, and a current friend of mine. It was rare that a victor's child was reaped, however it wasn't impossible. I knew Carter was mentoring this year, so Isaac's reaping must have been extremely painful for him.

In district 6, Cara Ford, 15 and Rail Coach, 16 were both reaped. Judging from how Cara started screaming and how Rail burst into tears, district 6 seemed like a bit of a mess this year.

Thea Groveland and Forrest Willer, both 17, were reaped from district 7. The two redheads seemed very willed and appeared to be ideal allies. I was very close with Willa Lumbar, the female mentor from district 7 after our tributes allied last year and I couldn't help but wonder if that alliance may be duplicated this year.

From district 8, Paisley Channel, 16 and Marc Satin, 18 were reaped. Paisley looked extremely wealthy, whereas Marc looked like he came from an extremely poor background. Polar opposite district partners either worked very well or very poorly and I would definitely look out for their dynamic.

Skye Miller, 18 and Harvey Rye, 15 were reaped from from district 9. Neither Skye nor Harvey looked very pleased with their bubbly escort, and both appeared to be ready to kill a moment's notice. I could easily see both of them doing well.

Robyn Song, 14 and Wren Fowl, 17 were reaped from district 11. The pair from district 11 didn't really capture my attention, but they both looked fairly fit and I refused to write any tributes off this early.

Finishing off the reapings, Candace Flint, 12 and Hayden Coleman, 14 were reaped from district 12. As the youngest pair in the games, I was sure they would attract the most sympathy, however neither of them looked like major threats.

"So, looks like we've got an interesting batch of tributes for the quell," Maxwell commented as the district 12 reapings finished up.

"Indeed," a new voice announced from the back of he room.

All four of our heads whipped towards the source of the voice, only to be stared down by Delphi.

She gave us a half smile, "Just thought I'd let you know we've arrived at the Capitol."

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Hello, everyone! So I know this chapter was short and I threw a lot of information at you, so to make things a little easier, I organized a tribute chart below. Feel free to refer back to it as the story progresses! Hope to have some feedback from you all!

 **\- Cass**

* * *

 **Tributes:**

D1:

M: Victor Lux, 17

F: Scarlett Price, 16

D2:

M: Julius Stone, 15

F: Nike Rouge, 18

D3:

M: Albert Sparks, 13

F: Kennedy Fuse, 13

D4:

M: Troy Hudson, 12

F: Marina Rivers, 15

D5:

M: Isaac Briggs, 18

F: Davina Simmons, 13

D6:

M: Rail Coach, 16

F: Cara Ford, 15

D7:

M: Forrest Willer, 17

F: Thea Groveland, 17

D8:

M: Marc Satin, 18

F: Paisley Channel, 16

D9:

M: Harvey Rye, 15

F: Skye Miller, 18

D10:

M: Chord Finely, 18

F: Cheyenne Bell, 17

D11

M: Wren Fowl, 17

F: Robyn Song, 14

D12:

M: Hayden Coleman, 14

F: Candace Flint, 12


	3. Chapter 3

_"Why do my eyebrows feel so sore?" I muttered to myself as a blue-haired woman lined my eyes with a black pencil of sorts._

 _The man in charge of the whole operation chuckled, "My lovely assistant, Lyric, plucked a few stay hairs..."_

 _"This is cruel and unusual punishment," I replied, as he continued curling my hair. I crossed my arms defensively, trying to ignore the stinging sensation. Everything about this experience was new._

 _He sighed, "My dear Brea, if you think this is bad, you haven't seen anything yet."_

* * *

"Wow...these are incredible," I muttered to myself softly as I looked through the sketches pinned up on the mirrors.

The stylist smirked from behind me, "Well, if the great Brea Braddock is impressed, then they must be good."

Grinning, I turned around and brought the man into a tight hug.

"My dear Brea, it's been far too long," he replied, "And what have you done to your hair? It looks like some sort of ancient bush forest!"

I chuckled slightly, "Well, Jamie, if it makes you feel better, after you're done with Chord and Cheyenne, you can fix it."

"Nonsense, sit down. I'll do it right now while the prep teams take care of the tributes," he responded, as I sat down in the chair facing the mirror, "How do you feel about going shorter?"

"I trust you," I replied as I looked at my long brown locks for the last time, "Go crazy."

He couldn't suppress his grin, "I'm so glad you're so adventurous. It's why you've always been one of my favorites."

"The Capitol would have to disagree with you, I was ranked 99 out of 199 on the list of favorite victors and number 5 out of 10 on the list of district 10 victors," I replied with a slight laugh.

"Bah! _Vain Capitolite_ is pure rubbish, anyways. The real gossip is in _The_ _Capitol Daily_ ," he responded as he tossed my hair around. He then swiveled the chair around so I could no longer see myself and pulled out the scissors.

Jamie was an extraordinary person with an extravagant personality...in fact the district 10 team would always tease him that he would make a better escort than Delphi. Despite how he spoke and his extreme Capitolite tendencies, Jamie had helped me when no one else could.

During my first year as a mentor, I had refused President Roth a certain _service_ and I was put in a rather comprising situation. As soon as I confirmed my refusal, both my tributes were instantly killed by mutts and I quickly gained news of my parent's "accidental deaths". After that, I had gone into a total state of disaster and spent all my time at bars around the Capitol just drinking and drinking until I was kicked out.

Jamie was able to work some damage control and made all of my transgressions disappear. He even managed to work a miracle and made me look some what presentable to the public eye.

Last year, I gave into President Roth's demands and my siblings were spared, but by that time, I had spent so many late nights with Jamie, he had become practically family...almost like a father. In all honestly, I would never be able to fully thank him for everything he did for me.

After sitting in silence for a while, listening to the snipping of scissors, Jamie finally stopped, "You look lovely, my dear..." he whispered, "Take a look."

Spinning my chair around, I was able to finally see myself in the mirror. My hair had been cut far shorter than I had expected. It now barely touched my shoulders and made for a very different look.

"Mr. Atticus! Mr. Atticus!" one of the Prep team members exclaimed, rushing in, "The tributes are ready to be dressed!"

Jamie shook his head before placing and chaste kiss in the top of my head, "Duty calls, my dear! See you at the parade."

* * *

"Where have you been?" I asked as Maxwell slid into the seat next to me in district 10's tribute parade viewing box.

He shook his head and tugged at his jacket slightly. I got the message instantly, it was code for "Roth Business. Don't ask". From the pained expression he wore, I could tell it had been an unpleasant experience and winced in sympathy.

Rubbing his shoulder slightly, I filled him in on everything he had missed, from my new haircut to the tribute's outfits.

"So, at least they aren't cowboys this year," he remarked, attempting to be humorous.

Forcing a slight laugh, I nodded, "Jamie's really outdone himself this year."

"By the way, just thought I'd let you know Drew Sinclair is here..." Max mentioned as we slipped into our seats, "Not that it should be a surprise or anything...he is one of district 2's finest mentors..."

I instantly tensed up at the mention of his name. Drew Sinclair was one of the few mentors I truly disliked. Two years ago, after both my tributes had been mauled by mutts, he had been quick to give his opinions on the whole matter. Normally I would accept what had happened and move on, however Drew had made it personal when he blatantly blamed my tributes' death on me. Our relationship was rocky, to say the least.

I was about to respond, but Jamie and Delphi walked into the room, along with an unfamiliar face.

"This is Trystan Vaun, he's told me that he's interested in sponsoring district 10 this year and wanted to see the viewing box," Delphi explained, sounding almost exasperated.

Trystan seemed to be in his late 30s, perhaps early 40s. Judging by his appearance, I could tell he came from considerable wealth and power. He wore a trim, well-fitting suit and lacked the appearance of the typical Capitolite. He had dark blonde hair with a few grey streaks and extremely broad shoulders, easily resembling someone wealthy from one of the districts. None the less, something about him was extremely unsettling.

Maxwell and I simultaneously forced smiles on our faces and offered out our hands. He shook both our hands, perhaps a little too long for my comfort, before taking the seat behind me.

We sat in awkward for a couple moments until Roman Roy's powerful voice echoed throughout the stadium and the projector flipped on. Gasps of excitement coming from below us, filled the air and the anticipation seemed to be contagious.

"Hello, Panem," Roman announced, "Welcome to the 200th Annual Hunger Games! We are so glad you could join us for this fabulous Quell. I know these games are going to be one of the best so far!"

"Well, let's begin with district 1, shall we?" Roman continued as Victor Lux and his partner, Scarlett Price burst out into the stadium. They were both dressed in stunning white and black diamonds. Victor in a suit, sporting the white diamonds and Scarlett in a dress, sporting the black diamonds. It was a wonderful contrast and was clearly made to be a crowd pleaser.

It wasn't too long before district 10 entered the scene. To my surprise, they received quite the amount of applause, but to be fair, neither district 8 or 9 had been too impressive this year. Chord and Cheyenne were dressed in full black leather with just the right amount of skin revealed. It was stylish and quite sleek, to say the least.

Trystan seemed fairly impressed and I hoped this further reinforced the idea he should sponsor our tributes, despite how uncomfortable he made me feel.

Candace Flint and Hayden Coleman of district 12 finished up the parade with a crude attempt at ash-colored outfits that seemed more than unfortunate for the wearers.

As the applause soon tapered down, Roman regained everyone's attention, "Well, it seems as if the 200th games are off to a brilliant start! While we wait for the rankings board to be tallied up, we would like to thank all the stylists and designers who participated in this year's tribute parade. Now, without further ado, the first rankings of the games!"

Max took my hand and gave it a slight squeeze as we looked at the projection in our viewing box:

1: District 1

2: District 2

3: District 4

4: District 7

5: District 10

6: District 8

7: District 3

8: District 5

9: District 11

10: District 9

11: District 12

12: District 6

I sighed in relief and brought Max into a hug, "5th place, not bad!"

He grinned, as he hugged me back, before turning to Jamie, "Well done, Jamie, I really have to hand it to you, the black leather idea was brilliant!"

"I do try," Jamie replied, clearly quite happy with our ranking. Typically, District 10 was never higher than 8th place, so to be in the top half was quite exciting.

In the midst of our excitement, Trystan seemed to be writing something down on a piece of paper. He lacked the enthusiasm that the rest of the team held and seemed to be quite reserved.

He quickly folded the piece of paper in half and pressed it into my hand, "I'm interested in this team. Expect a call from me soon."

With that, he walked straight out of the room without another word.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Hello everyone! I hope your enjoying this story so far! If you don't mind, I'd like to take this opportunity to ask a couple questions to you all:

1\. What is a strong point of this story?

2\. Where are some places I could improve?

3\. In upcoming chapters, would you like to see this story take a darker route or a lighter route?

Thank you for your time and feedback!

 **\- Cass**


	4. Chapter 4

_"I. Want. To. Punch. His. Face!"_

 _"Brea, calm down, dear. Don't let him get to you," Jamie insisted, "Drew is just trying to rile you up so you lose focus."_

 _"He called me out in front of all of Panem!" I exclaimed, clearly not in the mood to calm down, "He blamed Jaxon's and Tessa's death on me! It couldn't be my fault! The mutts mauled them! There was nothing I could do! And for the record, I can maintain myself in a stressful situation! I'm sorry if I was slightly distracted by the fact that my parents were just killed!"_

 _Jamie and Maxwell shared a brief look before returning their eyes to me. I was sure the tears were beginning to return, and I couldn't understand how I had let myself become so vulnerable._

 _"What?" I questioned, far harsher than I expected, "You don't really think this is my fault...do you?"_

 _Jamie shook his head, "No...I just have to ask...did President Roth recently talk to you about anything?"_

 _"How do you know about that?"_

 _Jamie looked back to Maxwell uncomfortably, clearly unsure of how to proceed. He was about to say something before Delphi returned to the room, extremely troubled._

 _I quickly ran up to the older woman, "What's wrong, Delphi? Are you okay?"_

 _She looked at me for a split moment, letting the silence hang._

 _"Brea...your parents..." Delphi stopped for a split moment, clearing wrestling with something inside, "I have reason to believe their deaths weren't an accident."_

 _"I know. President Roth made her intentions very, very clear."_

* * *

Training days were nerve-wrecking for everyone. It was nearly 5:30 in the morning and the whole district 10 team had gathered in Maxwell's apartment to talk. I hadn't had too much sleep last night, so when my alarm rang I opted not to change out of my sleeping clothes. Delphi gave me a pointed look upon my arrival to the meeting, however nobody else seemed to care about my appearance, after all, not all of us could look as put together as Delphi could at 5 in the morning.

Cheyenne and Chord sat on either side of Maxwell as he began talking to them about how training would work this year. Mentors were not allowed to directly enter the training area or communicate with tributes during training, so it was vital we prepped our tributes as early as possible. Cheyenne and Chord had been working with Max for at least an hour, prior to my appearance and I was more than thankful that Max was a morning person.

The system worked well because Max was obviously a morning person, so he dealt with most of the pre-training, whereas I was a night person, so I dealt with a majority of the post-training. I knew for a fact 2 days was no where near enough to prepare yourself for a battle to the death, however we had to make do with what we had.

"You're goal during day one of training is to try a little bit of everything until you find one skill that works for you, then really train at it," I advised. The tactic had worked for me during my games and I had a feeling it would work for Cheyenne and Chord as well.

Maxwell nodded in agreement, "Brea is right, but you also need to start talking to people. Talk to people, look for any potential allies..."

"Also, you might want to decide if you two want to be allies. There's no shame in wanting to work separately...you guys need to do what's best for _your_ game," I directed at Cheyenne and Chord.

The two looked at each other awkwardly, both unsure of what to say. With so little time to the games I had to be blunt.

"I think I work best by myself..." Cheyenne muttered, shrugging, "...but I don't mind working with you if that's what you think is best."

Chord gave a weak smile, "I understand...honestly, I think it's best if we work apart. I don't want to have to turn on each other..."

Max clapped once, "Okay, then it's settled. Best of luck to both of you. I'll give you two 10 minutes with Brea to talk about anything else, then we'll start heading to the training center."

With that, Max and Delphi headed to the kitchen, leaving me with both tributes.

"So, any final advice for us?" Cheyenne questioned, "Do you think we have a chance at this?"

I sighed, "I hate to do this, but I'm going to be completely honest with you. It's going to be hard as hell, but I believe that district 10 _can_ have another victor. If I've learned anything from the Hunger Games, it's that _everybody_ has a chance. Some of those tributes are going to be far more prepared than you ever will be, but each of you have your own skills. I am going to do everything I can to give you both the best chance of winning, so all I ask is that you don't give up on yourself."

"Thank you, Brea," Chord said, holding out his hand for a handshake. I shook his hand, then pulled both him and Cheyenne into a slight hug, "Now listen up you two, make sure you train hard so we can do this, okay? Let's show them how badass we farmers can be."

The both nodded and despite my previous pep talk, I couldn't help but think that at least one of them wasn't ever coming home. The stress and fear I had been holding in since the trip began, started to bubble up inside me leaving me with an extremely unsettling feeling.

* * *

"Okay, so you two have a fairly light schedule today," Delphi announced to Max and I as we were walking from the training center, "Your mornings are free, until 4:00, when we have a brief fashion consultation with Jamie. But be clear, I'm hoping you two will be spending your time effectively."

I smiled, "Well, I'm happy to inform I'm have breakfast with Willa Lumbar and Carter Briggs, we're hoping to see if our tributes can align this year."

Delphi nodded in approval, "That's good, it's important to be on good terms with the other mentors. Oh! That reminds me, I arranged for you and Drew Sinclair to have lunch at 12:00, today."

I stopped right in my tracks, "WHAT THE HELL, Delphi? You know where our relationship stands. I'm not going."

"The last thing I need is a repeat of the 198th games. You know Drew has a lot of pull around the Capitol, and I do not want you to be on bad terms with him. Do you understand me?" Delphi snapped, glaring at me sternly.

"I'm not going...end of story..." I mumbled softly, knowing I had to pick my battles wisely.

Delphi simply replied with a pointed look.

"Fine...I'll go..."

"Good," Delphi replied, her voice far kinder than it had been earlier.

"At least she's not making you go to lunch with Kenna Creek..." Max offered, throwing Delphi a look.

I chuckled, "You mean your ex-girlfriend, Kenna Creek?"

"The one and only," he replied with a groan, "It's going to be horrible."

I rolled my eyes, "Well, who told you to go around sleeping with some airhead district 4 victor?"

"In my defense, she was very hot," he replied, sheepishly. Max had dated Kenna for a few months during his second year as a mentor, and while Kenna was quite easy on the eyes, she was extremely vapid. Their relationship drama made for great Capitolite gossip, but everybody knew Max and Kenna were never going to end up together. Now Max was married to Landry, a very sweet cattle rancher from our district and had a baby girl. He and Kenna had never gotten around to becoming friends and apparently Delphi decided this would be the perfect year for them to make up.

"Yeah, you have fun with that," I replied.

* * *

"Brea!" Willa called from the other side of the cafe.

I couldn't help but grin upon the sight of my friend. Although Willa had won the games four years before I did, we were nearly the same age and after last year's games, we bonded became extremely close. Our friendship wasn't a thing of rarity. Many mentors bonded and stayed in touch and I for one was glad to have some outer district connections.

"How have you been?" she asked as I slipped into the seat next to her. The cafe Willa had picked seemed fairly high-end and judging from the number of avoxes cleaning tables, I figured it must have been a very popular Capitolite hangout.

"I've been good," I replied, "How about you? Any new girlfriends I'm unaware of?" I questioned, like a gossiping teenager.

"Unfortunately, no," she replied, as she applied a thin layer of lip gloss to her lips and grinned widely, "How about you, any love interests in your life?"

I shook my head, "Honestly, back in district 10, I've just been super busy trying to keep Gia away from guys... I haven't had much time for meeting them. You would not believe the amount of douches Ray and I have had to scare off."

Willa giggled slightly, "You are so lucky you have siblings, it gets super lonely at Victor's Village in district 7."

"Anyways, how many douche bags can exist in district 10? You are all just a bunch of rancher-farmer people, are you not?" Willa joked, causing me to give her a playful push.

"We are not all just rancher-farmer people," I replied, "Anyways, you would not believe how many people just want to date her for our money. But speaking of douche bags, Delphi is making me have lunch with Drew Sinclair, of all people..."

Willa's eyes widened, "District 2, Drew Sinclair?"

"Yes, district 2, Drew Sinclair. How many Drew Sinclairs do you know?" I replied, unsuccessfully preventing myself from rolling my eyes.

Willa just smirked, "At least he agreed to have lunch with you...besides, one lunch with him can't be that bad."

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one who got humiliated on Panem TV," I responded, "Anyways, I'm pretty district 2's escort is making him come. They've got some new chick this year."

She shrugged in response, "I think you'll work it out... Anyways, before Carter gets here, I wanted to tell you about this girl I met. Her dad is quite interested in sponsoring district 7, but his daughter is quite attractive and I think she's into me too, so we'll see where that goes..."

"Hello, my dears," a soft, male voice greeted, "Not gossiping again, are we?"

It was the one, the only Carter Briggs.

I smiled at the older man and pulled out a seat for him to sit down. I could tell the last year had aged him. He was sporting a significant amount of grey hairs and and a handful of new wrinkles had appeared on his sun-beaten skin and I could tell the pain of his son's reaping was weighing down on him.

"I'm so sorry about Isaac..." Willa began, sympathetically, referring to Carter's oldest son who had just been reaped.

Carter shook his head, "Don't be sorry, Miss Lumbar. I'm afraid you had nothing to do with it, my dear. Now I must ask, you something, Miss Braddock, what has prompted your new look?"

It took me a few moments to realize he was referring to my haircut, but I quickly recovered, "Jamie thought he would do something new with my hair..."

"Ahh, well you must tell him he's done a very good job," Carter replied. I had the slightest feeling he was trying to avoid the topic of his son. It was clearly painful for him to discuss it, and I couldn't help but feel terrible for the older man.

All things considered, I suppose that no matter what we do, we will always be subjected to the Capitol's cruelty. Just because we've won the games doesn't mean our lives were perfect...in fact they were anything but. The fact of the matter simply was that the odds will never be in our favor and there is no changing our fate.

We may be the few with immunity, but we've never been more vulnerable.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Hello again, my dears (as Carter would say). I just wanted to say, for those of you still with this story and any new readers who have jumped aboard, thank you so much! You support means so much to me and to all my reviewers, I cannot thank you enough! I hope you continue to enjoy the story.

 **\- Cass**


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